THE FIRST STONE: A ballad--award winner

THE FIRST STONE—a ballad


[REFRAIN]

We must not judge others’ sins,
Lest others judge our own.
None is worthy on this earth
Of casting the first stone.


I
In the temple where Jesus
Used to give a sermon,
Scribes and Pharisees brought with
Them a young poor woman.


II

“Stone her to death, she is a
Sinner adulterous.
Moses said so”, they cried in
A way contemptuous.


[REFRAIN]

We must not judge others’ sins,
Lest others judge our own.
None is worthy on this earth
Of casting the first stone.


III

They were testing Jesus who
At once saw through their game.
He thought how to save her and
Bring all of them to shame.

IV

He said: ”Law of Moses is
Certainly sacred, though,
Only the sinless should come
Forward and first stone throw”.


[REFRAIN]

We must not judge others’ sins,
Lest others judge our own.
None is worthy on this earth
Of casting the first stone.


V

Since all of them were in sin
And sinless there was none,
Each of them felt ashamed and
Went away…… one by one.

VI

There was none to challenge the
Truth that they had been shown.
And the hapless woman was,
Through Jesus, left alone.


[REFRAIN]

We must not judge others’ sins,
Lest others judge our own.
None is worthy on this earth
Of casting the first stone.



* Written in abcb, 7-6-7-6 format

* Awarded place of honourable mention in item 744913, which now stands deleted.

* Awarded Third place and a Poetry Merit badge in the contest “Heaven in 2007” , item 1172300, now deleted


*SCRIBES were men who made in hand the copies of scriptures, as there was no printing press in those days. Thus, they had the reputation of knowing the scriptures [at that time, the Law of Moses, the word of God], i.e., the Old Testament.

*PHARISEES comprised the strictest sect of the Jewish religion, men who were most concerned about preserving the law of Moses

* It is obvious that both scribes and Pharisees knew the law of Moses very well but they used to bring tricky questions to Jesus in the hope that he would give judgment against the law laid down by Moses and thus they would be able to discredit him and wean away his followers.


M C Gupta
6 September 2003